He returned it again!
Oh boy Echizen has fallen right into the Vipers trap.
Huh? Trap?! Huh? Trap?!
Right. Viper uses the snake shot just to trap his opponent.
His real aim is
Hiss
So thats the angle he uses to return the ball...
Youve still got a ways to go.
Huh?! He switched to his left hand!
Inoue Sempai, can Echizen hit if he switches his racket to his left hand?
Well, well see
Hes a lefty.
Oh! Coach Ryuzaki!
Hes no ordinary first-year player
Okay Ryoma, its your serve.
Ryoma
Was that the snake shot?
No! That was just a regular return.
Hmm This new kid hits well...
low and deep, just inside the baseline
But...!
It wont matter to me!
A snake shot again!
Echizen can barely get to the ball!
This is it!
Out!
He returned that shot
It didnt work.
Awesome!
Theyre not giving an inch to each other.
Huh?!
Oops... Oh, geez!
Such a gloomy guy!
H-He can hear you!
Game to Kaido.
Game to Echizen.
Heyits tied at One - All.
Echizens keeping up with a starting player.
Sheesh, its hot today
Just watching the game makes you sweat.
Who do you think will win, Tezuka?
Now for the finish!
Its the snake shot again!
He got it!
Damn his footwork!
He returned my winning shot!
Ill admit that youre good.
But thats why its over for you!
Ryoma returns every single ball!
He may have a chance!
Hes amazing!
Hey, take pictures!
Oh right!
His footwork is remarkable.
However...
He returned it again!
Uh-oh, Echizen has fallen completely into Vipers trap.
Huh? Trap?
Yeah.
Vipers snake shot is just a decoy.
His real aim is
Ryoma is perspiring so hard!
I get it.
He has to scramble all over to return the snake shots,
so its dehydrating him!
Correct.
Vipers style is to slowly torment his exhausted opponent.
The more balls Ryoma returns, the more exhausted he becomes.
Ryoma will be
Forty - Love.
Momoshiro Sempai, you sure know a lot about his game.
Huh?
Youre right.
Hey, Ill bet...
youve lost to him in the same way.
Oh!
Whaa--?!
Shut up and watch the game!
All right, hell be reaching his limit.
Hes gonna fall soon.
Hey, cant be His stamina must be sapped
Huh?!
His ball is so fast! Whats this powerful shot?
Strange
His shots are becoming faster and more powerful!
Huh?!
Kaido, youre sweating a lot, too!
Forty - Thirty!
What a great match.
Im home, Uncle.
Wh-Wha--?! Hi, N-Nanako.
Are you off to classes at college?
What are you talking about? I just came back.
Welcome home, Nanako.
Hi, Aunty. Im back.
Dear, behave yourself in front of your niece.
Wha--?
Uncle! Youre reading smut!
Ahhh! Dont look!
Oh! Huh?!
Game to Echizen.
Well, whaddya know! Kaidos out of gas!
Kaido still doesnt notice.
His shots are the same
It cant be my reaction time?
Game to Echizen.
Well, whaddya know! Kaidos out of gas!
Whats going on?
I thought Kaido was dominating with his snake shots.
Ive never seen Kaido look so tired.
Huh? How come Kaido is more tired?
Im the wrong person to ask.
Another shot just inside the baseline!
Is that the only shot you know?!
Vipers been tricked.
Whats going on?
Wasnt it Echizen who was tired out?
Kaido used his snake shot to make Echizen run after the ball.
That was his strategy, to tire his opponent.
Now Echizen, on the other hand,
he keeps hitting the ball low and deep,
just inside the baseline, right at his feet.
So, Kaido has to bend his knees and keep his body low.
Every time Ryoma hits that shot,
Kaido is expending energy at more than twice the usual rate.
Thirty - Love!
And in so doing, Ryoma made his opponent tired instead.
Ohhh
Ryoma is so cool!
Wonderful Ryoma! Cool!
Im the one who was caught in the trap!
Both are physically tired,
but one figured out his opponents strategy.
Meanwhile, the other didnt realize that he had been caught.
Theres a huge psychological advantage in that.
He depended too much on strategy, Kaido.
All right, so Im tired. But he must be, too!
If I lose a mind game to a rookie, Ill be finished!
ECHIZEN 2 KAIDO 1
Game to Echizen.
Game to Kaido.
Kaido Sempai looks like he can still fight.
Now Kaido knows Ryomas strategy!
If its a battle of attrition, Ryoma might be at a disadvantage!
Huh? Huh?
For a snake shot...
Buggy!
Whip!
Shot!
Thats the answer.
Huh?!
What?!
H-Huh...?!
Wha--? ! The snake shot?
Snake shot? Snake shot?
That was a snake shot!
Why did he do it?
He hit the snake shot
Ryoma is too awesome!
Hey This is crazy!
Inoue Sempai, what did Echizen just say?
Buggy whip shot.
Buggy whip shot?
Its a huge looping swing from low to high
that uses centrifugal force to put a big spin on the ball.
Many top professional players have this shot as a weapon.
Kaidos snake shot is based on that.
But a special technique is required,
so its not something you can master easily.
But that kid was able to do it just by watching Kaido.
His technique is more than just average.
This guy
was able to hit my snake shot just from watching me?!
This is fairly difficult, Kaido.
I just happened to see an article on how to hit that shot in a magazine,
and tried it after seeing you hit the real thing.
But its tough without a long reach.
Wh-What?!
Technique
But more than that,
Echizen obviously has a lot of match experience
against high-level opponents.
This match has been decided.
Match point, Echizen.
ECHIZEN 5 KAIDO 3
Echizen needs only one point to win.
No way! Not to the new kid on the block!
Not me!
Not Kaoru Kaido!
The snake shot!
Huh?
Game, set!
Match to Echizen.
That 7th graderwon!
Amazing
Hes a first-year...!
I cant believe it
He won
He won!
Ryoma won!
Yay! Awesome! Great, Ryoma!
He made it, Sakuno!
Huh?!
H-His own knee
Hes always like that.
Shake hands?
What a sport.
Too bad, Kaido.
Im not giving up my place on the team.
No way
That 7th grader really won!
Hes not even officially a team member,
yet he beat one of the Seigaku regulars!
So, the players in Bracket D who remain undefeated are...
Echizen,
and you, Inui.
I believed it!
I believed Echizen could beat Kaido!
Horio, you always change your story.
But I was so impressed with Ryoma.
Being a starters a given. How lucky!
But who knows?
Kaido is an 8th grader,
but Ryomas next opponent is 9th grade regular, Inui Sempai.
Even Echizen
Ryoma will win!
Dont get so mad.
Hey! Huh?
Its no big deal, so lets finish cleaning up.
Hey, hey, Ryoma!
Youve been practicing with a coach since you were little, havent you?
Youre so strong. You never lost before, right?
Im losing every day.
Huh?
Quit joking!
You want to be a professional tennis player, right?
Not really.
No way! Thats such a waste!
Ryoma, youre good enough to make it as a professional!
Not interested.
What? Why? What? Why?
Then why do you play tennis?
Hey, Echizen!
Ryomas winning match against Kaido...
Im sure of it. Its Samurai Nanjiro.
What?
I guess we have to go see him.
See him? See who?
The boys father
Nanjiro Echizen.
Yo! Im Nanjiro Echizen. Call me Nan-chan.
A reporter named Inoue who said he was a fan of mine came to see me,
but he only asked about Ryoma, my son.
What an insult!
Okay, lets play some tennis.
Ill answer all your questions if you beat me.
Next on The Prince of Tennis: Nanjiro Echizen
How about a title like The Old Man of Tennis?
No? Why not?